Clifford o



C. G. BHANIGAN.

AUXlLlAHY FUEL TANK.

APPUCAHON FILED OCT. 28. I920.

,1 3 2 407 Patented J une 21, 1921.

x H a? z 2 INVEAVTOR A4, insane? UNITED STATES CLIFFORD G. BRANIGAN, OF NEW YGEK, N. Y.

AUXILIARY FUEL-TANK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 21, 1921.

Application filed October 23, 1920. Serial No. 420.097.

To all whom it may ('rmccrn Be it known that l. (urroiui (l. BRAKI- (MN. a eitizen of the limited States, residing at Xew l'ork eitv. in the county of llielr mond and ritate of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in .'\uxiliary FueL'F-anks. fully described and represented in the following specification and the ar'eoinpanying drawings, forming a part of the This invention. relates to auxiliary fuel tanks, and is partieularl direeted to suyh tanks for use upon motor vehieles.

The invention aims espeeiall v to provide an improved auxiliary fuel tank whirl: may he easily applied to the fuel system of existing automohiles. and \\'llltll will provide a reserve supply of fuel whirh may he called upon when the main supply earried In' the vehiele is exhausted.

In aorrordanee with the invention. the auxiliary fuel tank is so :tl'lililpft'tl that it is autonuitieally tilled from the main fuel tank ll) suetion preferably prodneed hv a eon neetion with the intake manifold of the vehicle engine.

The auxiliary tank possesses littfltllttl' advantages when applied to automohiles having what is known as the vaeuum feed tern. and when so applied is of extreme siniplieity and involves the use of no moving parts.

In order that. my invention may clearly be understood, 1 will deseriho in detail the sperille embodiment of it illustrated in the am eompanying drawing whit-h is a diagram inatitsectional elevation of th auxiliary fuel tank as applied to an automobile provided with the vaeuuin .l'eed system.

At the right-hand side of the drawing is shown the donhle tank and mechanism was tomarily used in the vaeuum feed system known as the Stew'artdlaruer system. I shall not (lest-vibe this meehanism in detail as it is well known to those skilled in the art. Hallie-e it to that the tank 11 is eonnet-ted by a pipe (I to the intake manifold of the engine which produces a partial vaeuuin in the tank ll whieh draws gasolene into the tank 1'1 through the pipe D which is customarily connected to the tank eontainin the main supply fuel- The suction continues until the gasolene level in the tank 11 rises to Y, when the mechanism connected to the float G closes the valve A controlling the pipe t and opens the valve B t-onneeting the tank ll to the atmosphere. When this occurs, gasolene flows from the tank l1 through the flap valve H into the tank It]. This continues until, the float G falls to such an extent that the valve B is elosed and the valve A opeped. Then the suction is again applied to the tank 11 draw ing in gasolene until this tank is again filled to the level Y. The operation is then re peated. and the valves A and B open and c-lose alternately so that gasolene is supplied, to the. tank it) as needed, from which tank it flows through the pipe K to the carhureter of the engine.

In aeeortlanee with my invention an auxiliary tank 15 is inserted in the pipe connecting' the main fuel supply tank with the Stewartdl'arner tank. The tank 15 is i'lost'd. The pipe 16 extends into the tank 15 from the top down to a point near the llfllttllll and is eonneeted at its upper end with one port of a three-port valve easing 17. Another port of this valve easing is coin net-ted to the pipe D extending from the tewart.-'arner tank. The third port is eonnerted by a pipe 18 to an aperture 19 in the top of the tank 15. A pipe 20 conneets the main fuel tank to an opening 21 in the tank 15. The tank 15 may be provided also with a pet eoek 22 most desirably located opposite the lower end of the pipe 16 for the withdrawal of sediment. and with a filling openiu; 23 provided with a closing plug 24. 'ithin the valve easing 17 is a rotary valve .35 provided with a manually operated handle not shown in the drawings.

In order to explain the operation of the auxiliary tank. 1 will first assume that the main fuel tank and the auxiliary tank 15 are full of gasolene and that the Stewartdvarner tank l! is filled to the level indicated at X in the draw ing, and that the valve 25 0ct-upies the position indicated in dotted lines in the drawing. The automobile engine bein then in operation. when vacuum is produred in the tank It by the opening, of the valve gasolene is drawn into the tank ll through the pipes 18 and D from the auxiliary tank 15. As the tank 15 is Closed, gasolene from the main fuel tank will be drawn by the suetion through the pipe 20 into the auxiliary tank 15, keeping the tank 15 filled with gasolene, as long as there is any gasolene in the main fuel tank.

and as soon as the gasolene level in the tank 15 is slightly lowered by the withdrawal of the gasolene through the pipe 18 no more gasolene can pass from the tank 15 through the pipes 18 and l) to the tank 11. so that the auxiliary tank 1,3 will remain substantially full of gasolene. As soon, therefore, as the gasolene contained in the tank 10 is exhausted to the level of the pipe K the. engine will stop. warning the operator that the fuel in the main tank is exhausted.

In order for the operator then to obtain the benefit of the fuel stored in the tank 15 to proceed to the nearest sourre of fuel supply. it is nierelv necessary to turn the valve 25 to the position indirated in full lines in the drawing. This will ronnect the pipe D with the pipe 16 instead of the pipe 18. The suetion produred in the pipe by rranking the engine will draw gasolene through the ipes 16 and T) from the auxiliary tank 15 into the tank 11 from whirh it will run into the tank 10 so that the motor may be op erated. The suction produred by the operation of the motor will then continue to draw gasolene from the auxiliary tank 15 through the pipe 16 until the supply in the tank 15 is exhausted. l' nder ordinary rireum stanres the operator will be enabled to reach a point 'of supply with his car before the gasolene in the tank 1.? is. exhausted.

When the engine is again started. after the main fuel tank has been refilled. and the valve :25 havii g been returned to the position indicated in dotted lines in the Trawing. the surtion produced by the engine in the pipe C and the tank ll will draw air from the tank 153 through the pipes 18 and D producing a partial raruuni in the tank 15 which wii draw gasolene into the tank 15 from the main supply tank through the pipe 20. No gasolene can be withdrawn from the tank 11' through the pipe 18 until the tank 1:; is rompletelv filled. During the filling of the tank 17 only air will be drawn into the tank 11 through the pipe D so that the gasolene level in the tank 11 will not rise to Y and the float U will hold the valve A open so that the surtion from the engine will be rontinuously applied to the tank ll and (-onserpiently to the tank 15. As soon, howeven as the tank 15 has been filled. gaso lene will be drawn from it through the pipes 18 and D into the tank 11 until the float G rises so as to rlosithe valve A, thereby cut ting of! the surtion from the engine and per K itting the gasoleue to flow from the tank ll into'the tank 10 and thus to the engine, after whirh the suotion will operate intermittently in :u-rordanre with the ordinary operation of the tewart-lvaruer system do srribed above.

The tank 15 is made of suit-h rapaeity that the gasolene ordinarily retained in the tank 1" of the Fitewalt-llarner system is suflh eient to run the engine while the tank 15 is filling, so that no interruption of the engine operation is Caused in filling the auxiliary tank. If. however. the engine has been op erated after the exhaustion of the supply in the main fuel tank until all the gasolene in the tank 15 is exhausted and the gasolene in the tank 11] has been lowered to the level of the top of the pipe K, a slightly different method is adopted. in this ease, after the filling of the main gasolene tank the valve 25 is retained in the position in dieated in full lines. The engine is l'hen rranked and the surtion thus produred in the tank 11 produres a partial vacuum in the tank 15. drawing gasolene from the main supply tank into the tank 1:) through the pipe 20. As soon as this gasoh-ne reaches the level of the lower end of the pipe 16. which is subshintially at the bottom of the tank 13. gasolene is drawn through the pipe 16 into the tank 11. refilling the tank 1 1 with substantially no more wanking than is necessary to refill this tank when. with the Stewartdl aruer tanks runner-ted in the ordinary gay, the gasolene in the tank 1U has been exhausted to the level of the pipe K. As soon as the tank lfl of the Stewart Warner system is refilled hy'the rranking. the engine may be operated and the valve 25 having been turned to the position shown in dotted lines in the drawing. the tank 15 will be filled by the operation of the engine as before described.

From the above description it apparent that my auxiliary tank may be introdueed in the ordinary vacuum feed system without alterations and that it is of extremely simple and compact ronstruetion and contains no moving parts. During the operation of the vehicle the tank is kept constantly filled so that it is always ready for use in an emergency by merely turning the valve 25. Furthermore. the refilling of the tank involves no interruption of the engine operation.

Many modifications may be made in the parfiriilar embodiment described Without departing from my invention. which consists essentially in providing an auxiliary fuel tank ronnerted in the pipe from the main fuel tank to the carhnretrr and adapted to he filled by surtion preferably produced by the engine.

lVhat is, (-laimed is:

1. The rombination with an automobile having a main fuel supply tank. a vacuum feed tank rontaining a float. and an engine. of a closed auxiliary fuel tank. a connection between the main tank and the auxiliary tank. and a ronnertion between said vacuum tank a nd said auxiliary tank, including manually operated means by which the suction of said vacuum ta either at the top of sai auxiliary tank or at a point near its bottom.

2. Th combination with an automobile having a main fuel sup 1y tank, a" vacuum feed tank containing a cat, and an engine, of a closed auxiliary fuel tank, a connection between the main tank and the auxiliary tank, an intake pipe extending to the vacuum feed tank, a pipe connected to an aperture in the top of the auxiliary tank, a pipe opening'into the auxiliary tank near its bottom, and a valve adapted to connect said intake pip with either of saidlast-m'entioned ipipea;

3. The combination with an automobile having a main fuel supply tank, a vacuum feed tank containing a cat, and an engine, of a closed auxiliary fuel tank, a connection between the main tank and the auxiliary tank, a three-port valve casing, a pipe connected to one ortof said casing extending into the auxiliary tank and communieating with said tank near its bottom, a pipe connecting another ort of said valve casing toan aperture in t e top of said auxiliary tank, an intake pipe connecting the third port of said valve casing with said vacuum eed, tank, and a valve in said valve casing adapted to connect the port with which said ma be applied at will a intake pipe is connected with either of the other rts.

4. he combination witlr'an automobile having a main fuel sup 1y tank, a vacuum feed tank containing a oat, and an engine, 13' of a closed auxiliary fuel tank, a connection between the main tank and the auxiliary .1' tank, a three-port valve casing, a pipe com neeted to one port of said casingextending into the auxiliary tank and communicating 50 with said tank near its bottom a pipe connecting another port of said in: ve casing'to an aperture in the top of said auxiliary tank an intake pipe connecting the third port 0 said .valvef;, easing with said vacuum feed tank, and, iifvalve in said valve casing ada ted to connect the port with which said int e" is connected with either of the oter'ports, said auxiliary tank having a normally closed clearing a rture in its hot tom below the end of the pipe extending into the tank. a

In testimony whereof Ihave hereunto Set my hand in the presence of two subscribing' witnesses.

, CLIFFORD o. BRAN IGAN. Witnesses:

Malena MAURUS,

LILLIAN R. Fox. 

